1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus and methods for electrolyzing fluids and more particularly relates to apparatus and methods for electrolyzing saline solutions for use in medical treatments.
2. The Prior Art
It has long been known that the electrolysis of fluids can result in useful products. In particular, the electrolysis of saline solution results in the production of chlorine and ozone. It is known that the products resulting from the electrolysis of saline solutions are in vitro microbicides for hard surfaces. Thus, various apparatus and methods have been proposed for electrolyzing saline solution, however, all of the previously available schemes present one or more drawbacks.
For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,236,992 and 4,316,787 to Themy disclose an electrode, method and apparatus for electrolyzing dilute saline solutions to produce effective amounts of disinfecting agents such as chlorine, ozone and hydroxide ions. One apparatus for producing electrolyzed saline solutions was previously available under the trade name Ster-O-Lizer. Laboratory reports and other data available from testing of electrolyzed saline solutions from various Ster-O-Lizer models have shown that it is effective in keeping water free of pathogenic organisms. Tests conducted in vitro further show that certain microorganisms, inclusive of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans, and Salmonella typhi, are non-infectious after exposure to electrolyzed saline solutions.
For many years, ozone (O.sub.3) has been used for the treatment of viral infections. Chlorine, in the form of chlorinated lime, was used successfully as early as 1846 to prevent and fight puerperal fever. By 1911, the United States purified as much as 800,000,000 gallons of water through the chlorination process. Wide use of chlorine as a 0.05% sodium hypochlorite solution (Dakins Solution) for open and infected wounds began in 1915. Dakins Solution was a standard product up to 1963 listed in the British Pharmacopeia.
As reported by Wilk et al., International Congress on Technology and Technology Exchange, First Euro-American Symposium, Paris, France (1992) and Science, Total Environment, 63:191-197 (1987), certain combinations of ozone and chlorine have significantly greater activity than either used separately against a variety of bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Candida albicans was also reported to be effectively killed by a combination of ozone and chlorine.
In view of the many uses of chlorine and ozone, numerous apparatus and methods have been proposed for generating chlorine and ozone. Significantly, the previously available apparatus and methods have not been well-suited to producing electrolyzed saline containing finite amounts of ozone and chlorine for treatment of physiological fluids for the destruction of microbes in warm blooded animals. It has recently been discovered that there are situations where physiological fluids can be beneficially treated using electrolyzed saline solutions. The treatment of physiological fluids such as whole blood, plasma or cell isolates by electrolyzed saline solution which renders them benign from infectious organisms without destroying the therapeutic characteristics of such fluids is now possible. Disadvantageously, the available apparatus and methods for generating chlorine and ozone are not well-suited for treatment of physiological fluids such as whole blood, plasma, or cell isolates.
Methods for treatment of physiological fluids using electrolyzed solutions are set forth in U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 07/527,321 filed May 23, 1990 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,334,383 issued Aug. 2, 1994) and 08/275,904 filed Jul. 15, 1994, all of which are now incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. In these documents, an electrolyzed saline solution, properly made and administered in vivo, is effective in the treatment of various infections brought on by invading antigens and particularly viral infections. Thus, it would be a great advance in the art to provide an apparatus and method for electrolyzing saline solution for administration in vivo.